


Smoke

by jaisydaisy



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Canon Compliant, Canonical Character Death, F/M, Sad
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-17
Updated: 2019-11-23
Packaged: 2021-02-10 03:43:37
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,510
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21463105
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/jaisydaisy/pseuds/jaisydaisy
Summary: It began with smoke. One ordinary, peaceful Halloween night ends with the destruction of a family and the creation of The Boy Who Lived.This story tells the experiences of James Potter, Lily Evans, Sirius Black and Albus Dumbledore on the night of October 31st, 1981.
Relationships: James Potter/Lily Evans Potter
Kudos: 4





	1. Chapter 1

It began with smoke.

James' wand puffed for the amusement of tiny Harry, his chubby hands reaching up to touch the coloured clouds. James laughed and so did the little boy, his bright green eyes watching his dad in wonder.

"What time was Sirius coming over again James?" Lily called from the other room, her hands busy in the sink washing the dishes from dinner.

"Any minute now, he just needed to fill up his bike." Her husband replied, blowing the smoke higher so Harry had to stretch to grab it.

"Well we'd better get this little fella off to bed then, now you've hyped him up" said Lily drying her hands as she came into the room, her hair falling across her face. James scooped the little boy up with a laugh, planted a wet kiss on his cheek and handed him to Lily.

"Thanks Lils, I'm beat." James said yawning and she smiled as she left the room. Ruffling his hair absentmindedly, James threw his wand onto the couch and stretched. For a moment he considered closing the curtains for the night, knowing how exposed Lily felt when they were open, despite the Fidelius charm. He started towards them only to hear a loud crash.

There was a moment of blinding white light and in an instant he knew. He'd found them.

Without time to worry about the fate of Peter, who they had entrusted with the secret, or his wand, which was still lying on the couch, James ran into the hall and saw him. A menacing hooded figure standing in the doorway of his family's home. The figure looked almost like a Dementor but instead of feeling all the happiness being sucked out of him, James only felt white hot pulsing terror. He spotted Lily frozen halfway up the stairs, little Harry still in her arms, and he yelled at her to run. If only they got away, if only they survived then this, this act of standing against him without a wand, the weeks of hiding without contacting old friends and family, would be worth it. He prepared himself to charge.

Voldemort laughed, high pitched and coldly, before casting the spell and green light filled James' vision, green like Lily's eyes.

Lily ran up the rest of the stairs and got to Harry's room, the first room she came to. Harry gave a little whimper as she set him down and began to barricade the door with whatever she could find. A chair and some boxes, they hadn't even finished moving in yet properly for Christ's sake. She heard the laughter as the spell was cast and felt a pain in her chest, worse than anything she'd ever felt. She couldn't stop herself from screaming. James was dead, she knew.

She looked at Harry, whose face was furrowed in confusion. He didn't understand why she was crying at the sound of footsteps making their way up the stairs. He didn't know his father was already dead. Wiping her tears away hurriedly Lily picked up the boy and held him close, whispering softly to him.

_Daddy loves you, Harry. Mummy loves you. We'll be okay. We'll see you again soon. _

She silently cursed the charms that they had placed on their home to stop people from Apparating to it that also stopped them from escaping. She cursed the fact that James had put down his wand. She cursed Sirius' bike for needing fuel on that particular night. But most of all she cursed Peter, who had revealed their hiding spot.

Peter had doomed them all. Dumbledore had told them the Fidelius charm only worked when the secret is given willingly. Lily didn't care what they'd promised him, or threatened him with. It didn't matter now. The irony was painful. No wonder his animagus form was a rat.

She heard Voldemort at the door, heard him cast a charm to blast it open, through the boxes she had piled there. Seeing Voldemort step into the room she dropped Harry into the crib and shielded him with her body, arms open wide. She realised faintly that she was still crying. Her face was wet and her shoulders shaking. She knew that she had dropped her wand on the stairs. There was nothing she could do.

**"Not Harry, not Harry, please not Harry!" **

She had already lost so much. James. Her heart throbbed painfully for the man she had married, lying alone in the hallway. Her hands gripped the crib tighter.

**"Stand aside, you silly girl...stand aside, now..." **

Why hadn't he killed her yet? Perhaps there was some scrap of humanity left in him. Perhaps he would let him live.

**"Not Harry, please no, take me, kill me instead-" **

If there was somehow a chance, some way she could make this all worthwhile.

**"This is my last warning-" **

He's just a boy, just a baby. He's _her_ baby.

**"Not Harry! Please ... have mercy ... have mercy ... Not Harry! Not Harry! Please - I'll do anything - "**

As the figure stepped towards her she could finally see beneath his hood and she saw that he was barely human anymore. His eyes were like slits and were coloured blood red, his skin almost translucent. Dark magic had done its damage. Who could ever stand against such horror?

**"Stand aside - stand aside girl" **

Lily willed every part of her body into protecting Harry as Voldemort took one final step towards her. She closed her eyes. She heard him cast the spell. Not Harry, she thought and she was gone.

It ended in smoke.

The curse which had rebounded, thwarted by a mother's love, had destroyed the entire right side of the top floor. Now missing one of its walls, moonlight shone into Harry's room and onto the crib, inside which Harry Potter stood, clutching at the bars of his cot and watching the smoke rise from the ruins. He was crying softly and occasionally rubbing at his face with chubby fists, the fresh wound on his forehead bright red and glistening in the moonlight.


	2. Chapter 2

Sirius loved Halloween. 

There was just something so muggle about the whole thing that spat in the face of his pureblood upbringing. Rather than the classy parties and feasts he’d been to growing up on All Hallows Eve, muggles celebrated with cheesy decorations and costumes. Sirius’ eyes wandered over the fake spiderwebs and paper ghosts decorating the petrol station as he filled up his bike. A group of teenagers dressed up as the cast of Star Wars were laughing as they walked into the petrol station, most likely to buy booze for a party they were going to. The boys dressed as Han and Luke were both linking arms with the girl dressed as Leia while the unfortunate girl dressed as Chewbacca trailed behind.

Sirius grinned and turned back to the pump. James and Lily had gone to see A New Hope on one of their first dates, and soon after James had dragged the rest of the Marauders to see it as well. He hadn't needed to drag them to see the next one. 

Maybe he should have bought a costume for Harry to wear. Like a pumpkin onesie. Or maybe some little deer antlers, that would be a laugh. Lily may have thought about it already, being muggle-born herself. They might have even gone trick or treating if they weren’t confined to the house. Sirius shut off the pump and went into the station to pay. 

Inside the station the teenagers were at the counter, a couple six packs in hand. Leia whispered to the Chewbacca when Sirius walked in and they both started giggling madly. 

“Having a nice night ladies?” Sirius asked dryly, ignoring the boys who were staring angrily.

“The night has barely begun, it’s only nine-thirty” Leia answered flirtatiously.

Nine-thirty? Shit. He’d promised Lily he’d get there by nine.

After a few tense moments fiddling over muggle money with the petrol station attendant, Sirius hurried back to his bike. Lily will kill him for being late. She’d told him that James had been looking forward to his visit for weeks. He swung his leg over his bike and switched on the ignition, revving the engine a couple times to warm it up.

“Nice bike.” Sirius turned to see a young man dressed as a zombie filling up his car at the next pump. “What model is it?” the man asked. 

“I built it myself.” Sirius said with a surge of pride. The man looked suitably impressed. He looked even more impressed when Sirius revved the bike once more and the bike flew up and into the crisp night air. 

\----------------

Albus Dumbledore did not like Halloween. Although he enjoyed the festivities of All Hallows Eve, the Order was under a lot of strain during muggle holidays, especially Halloween. It was difficult to keep muggles safe in these dark times when they insisted on celebrating holidays that explicitly taunted the magical community. Not to mention the muggle trend of dressing up in costume just made things easier for those with ill intent. It was all too easy for a Death Eater to walk around in public, in full view of muggles, and pick off stragglers to torture and control for their own amusement. 

The muggles had once believed that Halloween was a time when all the spirits came out to play, both good and evil. They dressed in costumes so that the spirits couldn’t tell them apart from one another and played games to keep the evil spirits at bay. Albus was not sure if the muggles still believed that, but he knew that they too could feel the dark energy being spread by the Dementor’s and Tom Riddle’s minions. He hoped that they had the good sense to understand that these spirits could not be tricked by costumes, nor could they be kept at bay by party games and fireworks.

Dumbledore had spent the large majority of the day putting out fires across the country, organising various missions for members of the Order, and speaking with the Minister about ways the Ministry could help to downplay the risks. Even now, late in the evening, he was sitting at his desk writing yet another note to the Minister, when he could have been enjoying the end of the feast which was happening in the Grand Hall at that very moment.

The beginning of the All Hallows Eve feast at Hogwarts had been a welcome reprieve for Albus. It was a tradition at Hogwarts to have a celebration on the eve of October 31st and this year had been no different, despite the dark mood outside the walls and Dumbledore’s own misgivings. It was important to show the students that they were safe and that life could continue as normal within the walls of Hogwarts. Some students had even organised their own parties in their common rooms, although Albus pretended not to know about that. The atmosphere at the feast was bright and cheery, and the House Elves had put on a magnificent spread of food. He was happy that life could continue as normal for his students, even if attendance had dwindled to an all time low this year. He had been called away from his meal all too soon by an urgent letter from the Ministry and forced to return to his dark and quiet office, with only Fawkes and the hundreds of sleeping portraits for company. The only sounds were the constant whirring of the silver instruments on Albus' desk, the quiet snores of the portraits and the light scratching of his quill on the parchment.

A flash of green light and a small thunk broke Dumbledore from his reverie and startled a couple of the portraits awake. It was one of Albus' devices, one of the more simple instruments and of his own design; a golden padlock that usually hovered a few centre meters above his desk and span slowly. The thunk had been made from the lock dropping to the wood of his desk. 

Albus dropped his quill and reached to pick up the device. It was only when he brought the lock closer to his half moon spectacles to inspect it that he realised that his hands were shaking. 

It was unlocked.

The Fidelius charm was broken.

James and Lily Potter were dead.

And Harry – now there he couldn’t be sure. There was still the prophecy to consider. It was possible that – no. 

The only way to know for sure would be to send someone. He’d have to be quick, the muggle policemen would be swarming over the scene in no time. Hagrid was the best choice, the most obvious choice. Albus turned to Fawkes, who looked at him mournfully. 

"Hagrid. Go." was all he said and the bird disappeared in a flash of fire, leaving only a feather behind. 

James and Lily. Albus took a moment to think about how he'd watched the boy with the wild black hair pursue the vivacious redhead over seven years at Hogwarts. The old man's eyes brimmed with tears behind his half-moon spectacles wet as he thought about how he'd watched the young couple grow andHe thought about their wedding, a simple yet cheery affair, in the midst of a war. He thought about the fire that burned behind their eyes when he'd asked them to join the Order, and the fear when he'd told them about the prophecy.

Of course it was possible that the boy had survived. Likely even. But what to do with the boy? He couldn't be kept at Hogwarts. A faint memory tugged at Albus, of a letter, written by a jealous older sister. 

Hagrid burst into the room suddenly, shaking Albus from his reverie.

"I'm here Professor Dumbledore sir!" he gasped unnecessarily. Fawkes was on his shoulder and squawked softly when Hagrid bent to put his hands on his knees to catch his breath. 

"Good" said Dumbledore, wiping his eyes as he stood up and walked out from behind his desk. "Take this" He handed Hagrid his quill, tapped it lightly with his wand and muttered "Portus" When the quill began to turn blue Albus looked into Hagrid's eyes carefully. "Go to Godric's Hollow. Get Harry out. Bring him to his aunt's house. I'll meet you there."

Hagrid looked frantically between Dumbledore and the glowing blue quill in his hands. "Dumbledore! Yeh gotta 'splain wha's goin' on more'n tha'!"

"James and Lily are dead, Hagrid."

Hagrid looked up at him in shock and Albus was forcefully reminded of the fresh faced youth that raised an Acromantula in his cupboard. So much responsibility rested in the hands of the young. He wanted to tell him gently, wanted to explain it all to him over a cup of tea or brandy so that they could mourn together. But there was no time.

"Go." He said simply. "Bring Harry to his Aunt's house. I'll meet you there." The quill burned bright blue and vanished, taking Hagrid with it. Dumbledore was alone again.


End file.
